Archive for June, 2010

I realize I like to hack stuff. I spent more time to write small programs that automate the work I encounter. Below is one of the examples.

We recently organized an TEDx conference. 1 requirement of the conference: each speaker is only given 18 minutes to speak. So we must put a count-down clock in front of the speakers to remind them how many minutes they have left.
And since we have no such specialized digital clock, I decided to write a small script to facilitate.

How the page looks like

Took me 30 mins to come up with the first version. Andrew took over and customize the script to allow specifying minutes and seconds through query string (thanks Andrew!)

You can try out the script here (though you might not see exactly in the picture since you don’t have the correct font): DS-Digital. You should try in the full-screen mode (keypress F11).

During the conference, we put the script in a 17″ computer facing the speaker and start it every time the speaker start his speech.

For those of you who are techie, you can download the source code (or you can just view source and see, it’s just some HTML, CSS and JS).

So it’s over. We made it. TEDxMalaren has really been a success, a success that I wouldn’t have imagined.

60 audience.

75 received applications (we even received 1 after the event ended)

480 live streaming audience.

400 gmail threads. 4000 emails sent among team members.

Countless emails sent to sponsors, speakers, partners, publicity emails. Countless hours spent to correct every single details of the program, the template, the pdfs file, the sponsor kit, the speaker kit, etc.

I enjoyed every single second of it. Of course there were times I felt extremely low, stressed and busy.

Of course there are problems along the way. Lots of them. But I enjoyed facing these problems. It’s boring without problems, isn’t it?

For the first time in my life I become an MC of such a big program. I spent 2 days to prepare the MC script to end up not using most of them and speak from my own thoughts. That leads to a lot of “erm” “uhm”. I felt like I didn’t do that good as I thought I would. But I know that everyone enjoyed the commentary and the jokes I tried to come up with.

Some of the quotes that I could remember during the events:

If you are looking for sympathy, it’s in the dictionary – Bhavik Gandhi

We are all given a gold coin everyday. You are free to do whatever you want but it’s non-refundable. How would you want to spend your gold coin today? – Chrissy Phoong

This one is a complement by one of our BoA members:I’ve never met so professional students in my life and I’ve been in the marketing profession for 10 years. You guys are amazing. Wow! – Richard Gatarski

I have only 1 little hope: our speakers would be invited to speak at TED.

And the thought has been bothering me throughout the last 4 months: how to bring TEDx to Vietnam?

I am done with my business case presentation. Now moving on to work the more important stuff: TEDxMälaren.

It’s a TEDx conference that me and 8 other friends have been working really hard for the last 4 months. And next Tuesday will say it all. All our efforts spent in 4 months will be presented in 1 day, no, 1 afternoon…

For the first time in my life I’ll be the MC for such program… gosh I don’t have a very good suit…

Anyway, we have livestreaming for the event. So if you are not in Stockholm but want to listen to the talks (and you should!), catch the livestream next next Tuesday 15/06/2010, 6PM Vietnam time or 7PM Singapore time.

I didn’t bring lunch to work yesterday. Since I’m running short, I decided I’ll go with McDonald, because it’s 1 of the cheap options I have (the other option is not to eat at all). I bought a McChicken and a cheeseburger. Then I started to think which one I should eat first.

It turns out that this is a very interesting problem to think about.

Assuming the McChicken is better than the cheeseburger (1.5 EUR to 1 EUR). If you’re “enjoy first, suffer later” kind, you eat the McChicken first. If you’re the “suffer then enjoy” kind, it’s the other way round. Simple.

But if we look at it in another way. We know that your appetite is dependent on your hungry level. The more hungry the more appetite you have. So if I eat the cheeseburger first, I’ll feel half-full after eating, and that makes the McChicken less delicious. But if I eat the McChicken first, the burger will taste even worse. Which one should I eat first?

Then I recalled a TED talk I watched the other day, the speaker talks about experiencing memory and remembering memory. The idea is when recalling an experience, the last event plays a very important role in your impression (ending of a movie, last performance of a show, etc).
Which mean if I eat the McChicken later, I’ll probably have a better impression on the meal since my mouth will have better aftertaste. Which one should I eat first?

When I told my friends, they just said “huy, so complicated. just eat it.”